Nation Media Group

7 results arranged by date

1. How media ownership and advertising curb critical reporting

Attempts to control the media in Kenya date back to at least 1929, with transmission of the first radio signal by the British East African Broadcasting Corporation, which served the interests of the colonial government. Throughout the country’s history, including independence in 1963 and the end of one-party rule in 1992, the press has largely served the interests of those in power, with leaders expecting loyalty and support, Kenyan media scholar Wilson Ugangu wrote in an essay published this year.

2. Media contend with lawsuits, restrictive bills, legal limbo

Instead of passing new legislation in keeping with the new constitution’s guarantees for freedom of the press, the government has introduced a series of laws that undermine self-regulation and allow for harsh fines and even jail terms for journalists who commit perceived transgressions.

3. Critical journalists silenced by threats of arrest or violence

Harassment of the press from official quarters does not begin or end with the passage of troublesome legislation. Journalists say they are routinely threatened, intimidated, and even attacked, and that government authorities are the culprit more often than not.

Nairobi, January 27, 2015--Tanzanian authorities banned circulation of the privately owned regional weekly The East African on January 21, citing the newspaper's lack of registration, according to news reports. Local journalists said they believed the paper was shut because of its critical coverage of the government.

After a decade of unprecedented growth and development, the insistence on positive news remains a significant threat to press freedom in sub-Saharan Africa.
By Mohamed Keita

A newspaper displayed in the Ikoyi district of Lagos on September 30, 2013, tells of a deadly attack on a college in northeast Nigeria by suspected Boko Haram militants. Coverage of the group can be sensitive in Nigeria. (Reuters/Akintunde Akinleye)

The printed word is thriving in parts of Africa, but advertisers' clout means they can often quietly control what is published.
By Tom Rhodes

Kenyans read election coverage in the Mathare slum in Nairobi, the capital, on March 9, 2013. One reason that advertising revenue trumps circulation for East Africa's newspapers is that readers often share papers to save money. (Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

Nairobi, January 22,
2013--Kenyan authorities must hold to account soldiers with the General Service
Unit, Kenya's paramilitary force, in connection with their reported assault of
two journalists on Sunday, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.